"Emma's Dance" continues from "The Dream Dancer" after Emma Ashford's marriage to Lord Alan Fallsworth is interrupted by a woman claiming to be his lost betrothed. But with discrepancies in the Lady's story the suspicion mounts that she's an imposter especially when Emma is visited by the spirit of young Lady Carlyn who died at six years of age in a carriage accident. When the King refuses to break the betrothal for political reasons Alan and Emma have no recourse but to find evidence of the subterfuge or be separated forever after he's forced to wed the charlatan.
With steamy love scenes as Emma and Alan continually meet to consummate their love, the story quickly heats up as the imposter and her cohorts continually thwart their efforts to discover the truth. With Lady Carlyn's father drugged and any influence Emma's dream dancing might have on the pretender's mother foiled through her death, the lovers search for information in Scotland only to face danger from the antagonists of an old feud.
Fueling the excitement and intrigue of this passionate romance is a lively ghost, the evil of witchcraft and the power of dream dancing to influence people's decisions. Fast-paced, the action never slows as the imposter not only uses her wiles to keep the lovers apart, to build trust with Alan's father who is willing to concede to her demands for the honor of the family, but in hatching a plan to imprison and kill Emma.
Leslie Hachtel has the ability to create characters that are complex, realistic and unforgettable as they struggle to uncover the truth behind a fraud that threatens the lovers' happiness. Emma for years embittered and miserable because of the cruelty of her father was cold, difficult and temperamental- a shrew. With Alan's love and Bryce's friendship she's become caring and compassionate, showing a sharp wit and strong resolve to leave the past behind. Educated and honorable Lord Alan Fallsworth is passionate in his lovemaking and ardent in his resolve to make Emma is wife. The fraudulent Lady Carlyn is a heartless bully, overbearing, rude and ambitious while her younger counterpart once a loving, sweet child tends to be feisty and often petulant but determined to save her father and bring the evildoers to justice. These personalities and others heighten the action and drama of the story making it impossible to put down.
I thoroughly enjoyed "Emma's Dance" a well-structured and riveting page-turner from beginning to end. I look forward to the next book which I hope will not only bring back many familiar faces but center on Bryce's strong and independent friend Margaret.
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